GIFT  OF 
SEELEY  W.  MUDD 

and 

GEORGE  I.  COCHRAN     MEYER  ELSASSER 
DR.  JOHN  R.  HAYNES    WILLIAM  L.  II ON  SOLD 
JAMES  R.  MARTIN         MRS.  JOSEPH  F.  SARTORI 

to  the 

UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA 
SOUTHERN  BRANCH 


JOHN  FISKE 


This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below 


1  9 


Form  L-9-15w-8,'26 


Southern  Branch 
of  the 

University  of  California 

Los  Angeles 


Form  L  1 


FOR  SALC  a/ 
tt.  I.  LITTLEF.ELO, 

07  CORN  HILL, 
•OSTON. 


OF   INVERNEILL 


SOMETIME   PRISONER  OF  WAR 


In  the  Jail  at  Concord,  Massachusetts 


CHARLES    H.   WALCOTT 


UllustrateO 


PRINTED  FOR  THE  AUTHOR  BY  THOMAS  TODD 

JGeacon  predd 

14  BEACON  STREET,  BOSTON 


84380 


K  ACE. 


THIS  sketch  of  the  life  of  a  distinguished  British  officer 
arises  indirectly  from  researches  made  at  various  times,  for 
several  years  past,  into  the  history  of  my  native  town.  Shat- 
tuck's  History  does  not  mention  Campbell,  and  later  writers, 
who  have  alluded  to  his  confinement  in  the  old  Concord  jail, 
have  given  us  no  particulars  as  to  his  early  life,  or  how  he 
was  taken  prisoner,  or  what  were  the  later  fortunes  of  his  life. 
Faint  suggestions  were  encountered  here  and  there  of  a  dis- 
tinguished career  and  a  monument  in  Westminster  Abbey,  but 
the  name  Archibald  Campbell  was  borne  by  many  contempo- 
raries in  Scotland,  and  who  could  identify  the  distinguished 
general  who  reposes  in  the  famous  Abbey  as  one  and  the 
same  with  the  prisoner  of  Concord  ?  It  was  enough  to  excite 
one's  curiosity  to  learn  who  our  sometime  prisoner  really  was, 
how  he  came  to  be  a  prisoner,  how  long  he  remained  here, 
and  what  became  of  him  afterwards.  As  the  inquiry  pro- 
ceeded it  became  evident  that  we  were  dealing  with  no 
ordinary  man  ;  one  question  led  to  another,  friends  on  both 
sides  of  the  Atlantic  lent  kindly  aid  and  encouragement,  and 
now  that  it  is  finished,  the  author  ventures  to  hope  that  this 
sketch  will  be  thought  to  possess  some  interest  and  value  as 
a  contribution  to  the  history  of  our  country  at  a  time  when 
its  great  destiny  depended  upon  the  true  judgment  and  steady 
purpose  of  George  Washington  more  than  upon  all  else  besides. 


Thanks  are  due  to  my  friends,  Mr.  Edward  W.  Emerson 
and  Miss  Alicia  M.  Keyes,  of  Concord,  for  much  valuable 
assistance  and  advice.  For  the  beautiful  photographs  of  Inver- 
neill  House  and  of  the  family  portraits  preserved  there  I  am 
indebted  to  the  kindness  of  Lieutenant-Colonel  Duncan  Camp- 
bell, the  present  proprietor  of  Inverneill  House,  and  to  Miss 
Jane  K.  McDonald,  of  Gareloch. 

CONCORD,  MASS., 
October,  1898. 


SIR  ARCHIBALD  CAMPBELL. 


'"To wards  the  last  of  April  in  the  year  1776,  at 
Greenock,  on  the  west  coast  of  Scotland,  the 
7ist  Regiment  of  Highlanders  embarked  for  New 
England  to  assist  in  the  work  of  suppressing  the 
rebellion  which  had  arisen  in  these  parts. 

The  colonel  of  the  regiment  was  Simon 
Fraser,  Lord  of  Lovat  and  member  of  Parlia- 
ment, by  whose  exertions  mainly  and  at  whose 
expense  this  force  was  raised  expressly  for  service 
in  America.  Sir  William  Erskine,  afterwards 
quartermaster-general  at  New  York,  was  lieuten- 
ant-colonel of  the  ist  battalion;  the  senior  officer 
of  the  2d  battalion  was  Lieutenant-Colonel 
Archibald  Campbell,  and  next  in  command  was 
Major  Robert  Menzies  —  all  of  them  brave,  expe- 
rienced, and  trustworthy  officers.  General  David 
Stewart  says  of  the  officers  of  this  regiment: 

"  Sir  William  Erskine,  Sir  Archibald  Camp- 
bell, Major  Menzies,  Major  Macdonell  of  Loch 
Garry,  and  Major  Lamont  were  officers  of  great 
experience  and  approved  talents,  while  three- 
fourths  of  the  others  were  accomplished  gentle- 
men." 

Of  these,  Campbell  was  born  August  21,  1739, 
at  the  castle  of  Dunderaive,  near  Inverary,  now 


I2  SIR    ARCHIBALD   CAMPBELL. 

directions   were    herein    set   down   for   preserving 
the    health    of    the   soldiers.      The    bedding   was 
to    be    brought    on    deck    and    thoroughly   aired 
every    day    when     the    weather     should     permit. 
The  berths  were  to  be  swept  clean  and  sprinkled 
with   vinegar,   and  "  pitch    pots "   burnt    between 
decks  "  to  improve  and  correct  the  air."  Ventilators, 
or  windsails,  were  to  be  used  to  convey  fresh  air 
below  the  decks,  ports  and  scuttles  were  required 
to  be  thrown  open  as  often  as  possible,  and  other 
regulations  were  made  for  the  health  and  comfort 
of  the  voyagers.     The  men  were  to  be  frequently 
exercised  in  the  use  of  arms,  especially  in  priming, 
loading,  leveling  and  firing  at  a  mark.     They  wore 
the  Highland   bonnet,  red    regimental    coats,  and 
vests  of  the  same  color,  which,  however,  it  may  be 
inferred,  were  sometimes  worn,  on  informal  occa- 
sions, with    the   red   side    next   the   person.     The 
soldiers  were  also  supplied  with  "  frocks ; "  and  in 
case  of  alarm  in  the  night  time,  the  orders  were 
that  they  should  "  put  on  their  frocks  or  the  read- 
iest   Cloathing    without    distinction,"    but    if    an 
alarm   should  be  given    by  day,  coats   and    vests 
must   be  donned,  "  the   red   sides   out."      Officers 
and  men  were  divided  into  three  watches  of  four 
hours   each,  lights  and  fires  were  required    to  be 
put  out  at  eight  o'clock  in  the  evening,  and  careful 
provision  was  made  for  the  care  of  the  sick,  as  well 
as   for    guarding   the   powder   and    liquors.      For 


SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL.  13 

arms  the  men  were  supplied  with  fire-locks, 
swords,  cartridge-boxes  and  shot-pouches. 

In  the  third  week  of  the  voyage  a  violent 
gale  arose  and  separated  the  fleet  from  the  convoy, 
scattering  the  transports  in  all  directions.  Some 
found  their  way  safely  to  New  York ;  but  the 
"  George,"  "  Experiment,"  "  Annabella,"  "  Millham," 
and  "  Henry  and  Joseph  "  remained  together  for 
some  time  longer,  and  on  May  18  Campbell 
assumed  command  of  the  fleet,  or  all  that  re- 
mained of  it,  and  issued  new  regulations  pre- 
scribing signals  by  means  of  which  he  could 
communicate  with  the  other  transports,  and  they 
with  him. 

After  seven  weary  weeks  at  sea,  the  "  George" 
and  "  Annabella,"  bearing  two  companies  of  the 
7ist  Regiment,  sighted  Cape  Ann,  and  at  day- 
light on  June  16  they  were  at  the  entrance 
to  Boston  harbor.1  No  vessel  had  been  met 
which  could  have  given  them  any  news,  and 
they  were  in  complete  ignorance  of  the  fact 
that  the  town  had  been  evacuated  by  the  British 
forces  even  before  the  expedition  had  set  out 


'Campbell  says  that  it  was  "on  the  I7th  at  daylight,"  but 
apparently  he  is  in  error,  for  Price's  diary,  printed  in  the  Pro- 
ceedings of  the  Massachusetts  Historical  Society,  Vol.  7,  p.  257, 
states,  under  date  of  "  Sunday,  June  16,"  that  firing  was  heard 
in  the  bay  that  afternoon,  and  that  the  prisoners  were  landed  on 
the  I7th.  General  Greene's  order  about  the  funeral  was  issued 
on  the  i8th,  the  day  on  which  Major  Menzies  was  buried. 


I4  SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 

from  Scotland.  Banks,  the  English  commodore, 
was  blamed  for  not  leaving  behind  him  one  or  two 
cruisers  to  warn  vessels  that  might  approach  the 
harbor;1  but,  in  point  of  fact,  he  lingered  in  the 
lower  harbor  with  his  fleet,  presumably  for  this 
very  purpose,  as  late  as  June  14,  nearly  three 
months  after  the  evacuation  of  the  town,  and 
was  at  last  driven  away  by  a  vigorous  cannon- 
ade directed  from  Hull  and  Paddock's  Island  and 
Long  Island.  These  timely  operations  of  the 
Americans,  planned  by  General  Benjamin  Lin- 
coln, were  successfully  carried  out  under  the 
direction  of  Colonel  Whitcomb 2  only  two  days 
before  the  ill-fated  transports  arrived  at  the  mouth 
of  the  harbor  with  the  re-inforcements. 

In  the  confident  expectation  of  a  friendly 
welcome,  and  eager  to  reach  the  land  and  the 
end  of  a  tedious  voyage,  the  luckless  expedition, 
without  a  convoy,  headed  for  the  inner  harbor. 
They  knew  not  that  the  "  Ann  "  transport,  under 
command  of  Captain  Hamilton  Maxwell  of  the 
ist  battalion,  had  already  been  waylaid,  a  week 


1  Thomas  Jones,  in  his  History  of  New  York  during  the  Revolu- 
tionary War,  Vol.  i,  p.  54,  complains  that  no  cruisers  were  left 
behind  by  Commodore  Banks  to  warn  approaching  vessels,  and 
says  that  "one  or  two  frigates  stationed  in  the  bay  would  have 
prevented  all  this  mischief."  According  to  Stewart,  "a  ship  was 
left  behind  to  give  notice  to  ships  not  to  enter  the  harbour,  but  was 
itself  blown  off  in  a  gale  of  wind." 

2 Frothingham,  Siege  of  Boston,  p.  314,  note;  Bowen's  Life  of 
Benjamin  Lincoln,  p.  229. 


SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL.  ,5 

before,  by  privateers  who  carried  ship  and  cargo 
into  Marblehead ; '  and  even  if  they  had  known 
this,  it  is  not  likely  that  a  different  course  would 
have  been  taken,  for,  according  to  their  latest  in- 
formation, Boston  was  an  English  post  and  the 
place  of  their  destination. 

How  the  transports  were  attacked  and  how 
nobly  they  acquitted  themselves  is  best  told  in 
the  language  of  the  lieutenant-colonel  command- 
ing, in  his  report  to  Sir  William  Howe  dated  at 
Boston  June  19,  1776.  The  battle,  which  from  a 
military  or  naval  point  of  view  was  creditable  to 
all  concerned,  has  not  received  much  notice  from 
the  historians,  with  the  one  exception  of  Dr. 
William  Gordon,  who  appears  to  have  been  mainly 
indebted  for  his  information  to  Campbell's  report : 

"We  found  ourselves,"  says  Campbell,  "opposite  to 
the  harbour's  mouth  of  Boston,  but  from  contrary  winds 
it  was  necessary  to  make  several  Tacks  to  reach  it. 
Four  Schooners,  which  we  took  to  be  Pilots  or  armed 
vessels  in  the  Service  of  His  Majestic  (but  which  was 
afterwards  found  to  be  four  american  Privateer  of  8 
Carriage  guns,  12  Swevells  &  40  men  each),  were 
bearing  down  upon  us  at  4  o'clock  in  the  morning.  At 
half  an  hour  thereafter  two  of  them  engaged  us  and 
about  7  o'clock  the  other  two  were  close  alongside. 

The  George  transport,  on  board  of  which  Majr 
Menzies  &  I  with  108  of  the  2d  Battn  the  adjutant, 


1  On  June  10  the  parole  given  out  at  the  headquarters  in  Boston 
was  "  Highlanders,"  and  the  countersign  was  "  Taken."  Mass.  Hist. 
Soc.  Proc.,  1878,  p.  357. 


x6  SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 

the  Qr  Master  2  Lieutenants  and  five  Volunteers 
were  passengers,  had  only  six  piece  of  Cannon  to  op- 
pose and  the  Annabella,  on  board  of  which  was  Capt. 
M'Kinzie  together  with  2  Subalterns  volunteers  and 
82  private  of  the  I8t  Battn,  had  only  two  Swevells 
for  her  defence  —  under  such  Circumstances  I  thought  it 
expedient  for  the  Annabella  to  keep  ahead  of  the  George 
that  our  artillery  might  be  used  with  more  Effect  and 
less  Obstruction.  Two  of  the  Privateers  having  stationed 
themselves  on  our  larborde  Quarter  and  two  upon  our 
Starboard  quarter,  a  tollerable  Cannonade  ensued  which 
with  very  few  intermissions  lasted  till  four  in  the  Evening 
when  the  Enemy  bore  away  and  anchored  in  Plymouth 
harbour.  Our  Loss  upon  this  occasion  was  only  three 
men  mortally  wounded  on  board  the  George ;  one  killed 
&  one  man  slightly  wounded  on  Board  the  Annabella. 
As  my  orders  were  for  the  Port  of  Boston  I  thought 
it  my  Duty  at  this  happy  Crisis  to  push  forward  into  the 
Harbour  not  doubting  I  should  receive  protection  either 
from  a  Fort  or  some  ship  of  Force  stationed  there  for 
the  Security  of  our  Fleet.  Towards  the  Close  of  the 
Evening,  we  perceived  the  4  Schooners  that  were  en- 
gaged with  us  in  the  morning  joined  by  the  Brig  Defence 
of  1 6  Carnage  Guns  20  swevells  &  117  [men]  and  a 
schooner  of  eight  Carriage  Guns  12  swevells  &  40  men 
get  under  way  and  make  towards  us.  As  we  stood  up 
for  Nantasket  road  an  American  Battery  opened  upon 
us ;  which  was  the  first  serious  proof  we  had  that  there 
could  scarcely  be  any  friends  of  ours  at  Boston ;  and  we 
were  too  far  Embayed  to  retreat  especially  as  the  wind 
had  died  away  and  the  Tyde  of  flood  not  half  expended. 
After  each  of  the  vessells  having  twice  run  aground  we 
anchored  at  Georges  Island1  &  prepared  for  action,  but 
the  Annabella  by  some  misfortune  got  aground  so  far 
astern  of  the  George,  we  could  expect  but  a  feeble 


1  Now  occupied  by  Fort  Warren,  the  principal  defense  of  the 
harbor. 


SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL.  17 

support  from  her  musquetry.  About  no  Clock  two  of 
the  Schooners  anchored  right  on  our  Bow  and  one  right 
astern  of  us.  The  armed  Brig  took  her  Station  on  our 
Starboard  side  at  the  distance  of  two  hundred  yards  and 
hailed  us  to  strike  the  British  Flag.  Altho  the  mate  of 
our  Ship,  and  every  Sailor  on  board  (the  Capt.  only  ex- 
cepted)  refused  positively  to  fight  any  longer,  I  have  the 
pleasure  to  Inform  you  that  there  was  not  an  officer  non- 
commissioned officer  or  private  man  of  the  /ist,  but  stood 
to  their  Quarters  with  a  ready  and  chearful  Obedience. 
On  our  refusing  to  strike  the  British  Flag  the  Action 
was  renewed  with  a  good  dale  of  warmth  on  both  sides 
and  it  was  our  misfortune  after  the  sharp  Combat  of  an 
hour  &  one  half  to  have  expended  every  Shot  of  our 
artillery.  Under  such  Circumstances  hemmed  in  as  we 
were  with  6  Privateers  in  the  middle  of  an  Enemy's 
harbour,  beset  with  a  dead  Calm,  without  the  power  of 
Escaping  or  even  the  most  distant  hope  of  releife  I 
thought  it  became  my  duty  not  to  sacrifize  the  lives  of 
Gallant  men  wantonly  in  the  Arduous  attempt  of  an 
evident  impossibility.  In  this  unfortunate  affair  Major 
Menzies  &  7  private  Soldiers  were  killed,  the  Qr  Master 
and  12  private  soldiers  wounded.  The  Major  was  burried 
in  Boston  with  the  Honours  of  War. 

Since  our  Captivity  I  have  the  honour  to  acquent  you 
we  have  experienced  the  utmost  Civility  and  good  treat- 
ment from  the  people  in  power  at  Boston,  in  so  much  Sir, 
that  I  should  do  injustice  to  the  feelings  of  Generosity, 
did  I  not  make  this  particular  information  with  pleasure 
&  Satisfaction. 

I  have  now  to  request  of  you  that  so  soon  as  the 
distracted  state  of  this  unfortunate  Controversy  will 
admitt  you  will  be  pleased  to  take  an  early  oppertunity 
of  settling  a  Cartell  for  myself  and  Officers."  ' 


1  In  Almon's  Remembrancer  (Vol.  3,  p.  289)  is  what  purports  to 
be  a  copy  of  the  lieutenant-colonel's  report,  and  I  have  in  my  pos- 


!8  SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 

The  side  arms  of  the  officers  were  restored  to 
them,  and  the  Colonel  was  pleased  to  report  to  his 
superior  officer  the  "  utmost  civility  and  good  treat- 
ment "  received  from  the  people  of  Boston. 

Ezekiel  Price,  a  Boston  man,  wrote  in  his  diary 
under  date  of  "  Sunday,  June  16,"  that  the  firing  of 
cannon  was  heard  in  the  bay  that  afternoon ;  and 
on  the  next  day  he  was  at  Boston  and  saw  the 
officers  land  on  Long  Wharf  and  pass  up  King 
Street  on  their  way  to  General  Ward's  head- 
quarters. Great  numbers  of  people  were  in  the 
streets.  General  Greene's  orderly  book  contains 
an  order  issued  on  the  i8th,  that  "the  Highland 
major,  who  was  slain  in  the  last  engagement  on 
board  the  ship,  is  to  be  buried  this  afternoon  from 
the  State  House.  The  Scotch  officers  will  walk 
as  mourners,  and  all  the  officers  in  town  off  duty 
are  desired  to  walk  in  the  procession." 

The  commanding  officer  of  the  expedition 
was  fully  justified  in  saying  that,  everything  con- 
sidered, the  result  did  not  reflect  dishonor  upon 
the  officers  and  men  under  his  command.  Great, 
however,  must  have  been  the  exultation  of  the 
Americans,  whose  pluck  and  persistency  had  at 


session  a  MS.  copy  sent  by  Campbell  at  the  time  to  his  kinsman, 
Captain  Archibald  Campbell,  for  the  information  of  his  friends  at 
home.  This  copy  was  recently  obtained  through  the  kindly  offices 
of  Mr.  Duncan  Campbell  of  Craignish,  and  as  it  differs  in  some 
material  particulars  from  the  printed  report,  I  have  thought  best 
to  follow  the  manuscript. 


SfR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL.  ig 

length  been  rewarded  by  the  capture  of  an  officer 
of  high  rank,  together  with  half  his  regiment, 
before  they  could  strike  a  blow  in  the  enterprise 
for  which  they  were  really  enlisted.  Officers  and 
men  fought  bravely  until  their  ammunition  failed, 
but  with  such  opponents  to  contend  with,  and 
under  all  the  adverse  circumstances  of  the  case, 
defeat  was  inevitable.  We  note  with  pleasure  the 
courtesies  extended  by  the  victors  to  the  van- 
quished, and  are  glad  to  know  that,  thus  far,  at 
least,  our  rough,  untutored  militia  had  in  no 
respect  fallen  short  of  what  Campbell  and  his 
brother  officers  might  have  expected  from  vet- 
erans trained  in  all  the  etiquette  and  discipline 
of  European  armies. 

On  the  i  gth,  while  Campbell  was  writing  his 
report,  Captain  Lawrence  Campbell,  in  command 
of  the  transport  "  Lord  Howe,"  stood  into  the 
harbor  all  ignorant  of  what  had  happened,  and  he 
too  was  taken  into  camp  by  the  insatiate  rebels. 

The  situation  at  Boston  was  by  no  means 
free  from  embarrassment ;  for,  as  a  result  of  these 
operations,  more  than  four  hundred  (some  con- 
temporary accounts  say,  seven  hundred)  prisoners 
of  war  were  suddenly  thrown  into  the  hands 
of  a  people  who  had  no  sufficient  means  of 
properly  securing  and  caring  for  their  unwilling 
guests.  There  was  also  good  reason  to  fear 
that  Commodore  Banks,  in  his  slow  progress 


20  SfR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 

towards  Halifax,  might  touch  at  some  intermedi- 
ate point,  and,  learning  of  the  captures  in  Boston 
harbor,  feel  impelled  to  take  advantage  of  any 
favorable  wind  that  might  offer,  and  seek  an 
opportunity  of  doing  something  to  lessen  the 
force  of  the  adverse  criticism  which  he  was  sure 
to  encounter  when  news  of  the  disaster  should 
be  received  by  the  British  commander-in-chief. 

In  May  preceding  the  Continental  Congress 
had  ordered  that  all  persons  taken  in  arms  on 
board  any  prize  should  be  deemed  prisoners  of 
war,  to  be  taken  in  charge  by  the  supreme  executive 
power  in  the  colony  to  which  they  might  be 
brought.  Officers  were  not  to  be  permitted  to 
reside  in  or  near  any  seaport  town  or  public  post- 
road,  nor  were  officers  and  privates  to  be  suffered 
to  reside  in  the  same  place.  Secure  places  must 
be  found  in  the  more  remote  inland  towns,  from 
which  escape  would  be  difficult,  and  where  the 
chances  of  a  successful  rescue  would  be  least. 
It  was  further  ordered  by  Congress  that  officers 
should  be  allowed  to  give  their  parole,  if  they 
were  willing,  those  who  refused  to  be  committed 
to  prison.  Prisoners  who  were  not  officers  might 
be  permitted  to  exercise  their  trades  and  to  labor 
for  the  support  of  themselves  and  their  families. 

Such,  in  general,  were  the  directions  of  the  Con- 
tinental Congress  to  the  Council  of  Massachusetts, 
then  the  supreme  executive  power  in  the  province ; 


SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL.  2I 

and,  accordingly,  on  June  20,  the  Highland  pris- 
oners were  ordered  to  the  interior,  in  squads  of 
one  hundred  to  each  of  the  principal  counties. 
The  officers  were  paroled ;  but  the  sheriff  desig- 
nated in  each  order  was  required  to  deliver  to 
the  Committees  of  Correspondence,  Inspection, 
and  Safety,  in  the  several  towns,  all  the  private 
soldiers  who  were  willing  to  labor  under  the 
direction  and  inspection  of  the  town  committee 
in  the  exercise  of  their  trades,  and  to  confine  in 
the  county  jails  all  who  were  not  so  inclined. 

The  Highlanders  of  the  eighteenth  century  are 
not  usually  associated  in  our  minds  with  any  occu- 
pation so  tame  and  commonplace  as  a  useful  trade  ; 
nevertheless,  upon  the  rolls  of  this  regiment  men 
are  described  not  only  as  common  laborers,  but 
there  were  also  flax  dressers,  shoemakers,  tailors, 
weavers,  plasterers,  wrights  and  smiths,  a  salter,  a 
farmer,  a  gardener,  a  butcher,  a  land  surveyor,  a 
stocking  weaver,  a  baxter  [baker's  lad],  a  road- 
maker,  a  nailer,  and  one  merchant  —  making 
altogether  a  company  of  varied  talents  and 
capacity  for  usefulness  that  would  have  been 
a  valuable  accession  to  any  colony.  At  this 
particular  time,  however,  their  purpose  was  the 
opposite  of  peaceful ;  they  had  accepted  the  king's 
shilling,  for  the  time  being  their  trade  was  war, 
and  to  most  of  them  an  idle  life  in  jail  seemed 
preferable  to  working  at  their  trades  unfettered, 


22  SIX    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 

but  under  the  galling  espionage  of  a  Committee 
of  Inspection.1  Lieutenant-Colonel  Campbell  and 
seven  other  officers  were  ordered  to  the  town 
of  Reading  and  found  quarters  in  the  house  of 
Captain  Nathan  Parker,  which  is  yet  standing 
near  the  railroad  station  in  that  town,  in  the 
West  Parish,  now  Reading. 

A  retinue  of  twenty-two  servants,  including 
four  women  and  two  children,  went  down  into 
the  country  to  minister  to  the  comforts  and 
pleasures  of  this  band  of  eight.  Among  them 
were  a  cook,  a  carpenter,  a  shoemaker,  a  tailor, 
and  a  piper.  The  officers  were  allowed  to  go 
about  freely  within  a  radius  of  six  miles ;  and, 
between  the  cook  and  the  piper,  life  was  not  so 
dull  in  Reading  after  all.  But  the  plain  country 
people,  unused  to  such  splendor  of  bearing  and 
quaintness  of  apparel,  looked  with  disfavor  upon 
the  gay,  red-coated  strangers  whose  outlandish 
costume  and  music  disturbed  the  customary 
serenity  of  their  village,  and  whose  repeated 
demands  upon  the  public  treasury  to  feed  and 
clothe  the  servants  of  their  luxurious  habits  were 


1  In  one  of  Campbell's  letters  it  is  stated  that  the  soldiers  were 
expected  to  work  for  their  captors  without  pay;  but  if  this  require- 
ment was  ever  insisted  upon  it  was  soon  waived,  for  in  a  letter  from 
Col.  James  Bowdoin,  President  of  the  Council,  August  23,  1776,  he 
says,  that  of  the  Highlanders  many  and  perhaps  the  largest  part  of 
the  privates  were  "by  their  own  consent  at  labour  for  their  subsis- 
tence."—  Mass.  Archives,  Vol.  195,  p.  447. 


SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL.  23 

well  calculated  to  offend  the  frugal,  self-denying 
farmers  of  Middlesex,  as  well  as  the  "  people  in 
power "  at  Boston. 

Before  long  the  supplies  for  the  servants 
became  irregular,  and  then  ceased  altogether, 
the  honorable  council  thinking  it  "  highly  reason- 
able "  that  the  officers  should  either  support  their 
servants,  or  dismiss  them  and  allow  them  to  go  to 
work.  Accordingly,  we  find,  about  the  middle  of 
August,  that  the  lieutenant-colonel  had  dismissed 
four  of  his  servants.  One  went  to  work  at  his 
trade  of  shoemaking;  the  other  three,  refusing  to 
work,  were  lodged  in  jail.  Campbell  hired  a 
house  in  Reading  and  continued  to  live  there 
comfortably  with  his  companions  and  servants, 
until  the  capture  of  General  Charles  Lee,  in 
December,  1776. 

The  grief  and  sense  of  loss  everywhere  felt  by 
the  Americans  upon  hearing  of  the  capture  of  Lee 
were  succeeded  by  feelings  of  indignant  resent- 
ment when  it  was  learned  that  General  Howe, 
the  British  commander-in-chief  at  New  York, 
refused  to  entertain  any  proposition  for  the 
exchange  of  Lee,  although  Campbell  and  five 
Hessian  field  officers  were  offered  as  an  equiva- 
lent for  the  dashing  but  erratic  general.  Howe's 
orders  from  the  English  government  even  re- 
quired him  to  send  Lee  to  England  by  the  first 
ship  of  war,  to  be  tried  there  as  a  deserter  from 


24 


SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 


the  English  army;  but  the  British  commander,  in 
the  exercise  of  a  superior  discretion,  chose  to 
disregard  this  part  of  his  instructions,  and  in  con- 
sequence of  the  representations  made  by  him  the 
government's  mandate  was  withdrawn  or  qualified 
in  this  respect.  Then  it  was  that,  through  a 
curious  combination  of  popular  feeling  and  mis- 
conception of  material  facts,  Campbell's  fortunes 
became  so  closely  involved  with  Lee's  as  to  re- 
quire much  of  the  attention  of  the  chief  com- 
manding officers  on  both  sides. 

The  demand  for  retaliation  upon  the  prisoners 
in  the  hands  of  our  people  grew  out  of  the  wide- 
spread belief  that  Lee  was  being  maltreated,  and 
this  demand  was  stimulated  by  the  order  of  the 
English  government  that  Lee  should  be  sent  to 
England  to  be  tried  for  his  life  before  a  military 
tribunal.  The  harsh  treatment  of  Ethan  Allen, 
lurid  accounts  of  Indian  atrocities  on  the  frontiers, 
the  excessive  zeal  of  the  tories,  and  other  alleged 
outrages,  either  perpetrated  or  connived  at  by 
the  British,  were  cited  as  just  grounds  for  retal- 
iation.1 The  order  of  Congress,  passed  January 
6,  1777,  was  as  follows: 

Congress  being  informed  that  Major-General  Lee 
hath,  since  his  captivity,  been  committed  to  the  custody 
of  the  provost,  instead  of  being  enlarged  on  his  parole, 
according  to  the  humane  practice  that  has  taken  place 


1  Almon's  Remembrancer,  Vol.  V,  p.  139. 


SSJ?    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL.  25 

with  officers  of  the  enemy  who  have  fallen  into  the  hands 
of  the  American  troops  —  a  treatment  totally  unworthy  of 
that  gentleman's  eminent  qualifications,  and  his  rank  in 
the  service  of  the  United  States,  and  strongly  indicative 
of  farther  injuries  to  his  person  : 

Resolved,  That  General  Washington  be  directed  to 
send  a  flag  to  General  Howe,  and  inform  him  that,  should 
the  proffered  exchange  of  General  Lee  for  six  Hessian 
field  officers  not  be  accepted,  and  the  treatment  of  him  as 
above  mentioned  be  continued,  the  principles  of  retalia- 
tion shall  occasion  five  of  the  said  Hessian  field  officers, 
together  with  Lieutenant-Colonel  Archibald  Campbell,  or 
any  other  officers  that  are  or  shall  be  in  our  possession 
equivalent  in  number  or  quality,  to  be  detained,  in  order 
that  the  same  treatment  which  General  Lee  shall  receive 
may  be  exactly  inflicted  upon  their  persons. 

Ordered,  That  a  copy  of  the  above  resolution  be 
transmitted  to  the  council  of  Massachusetts  Bay,  and 
that  they  be  desired  to  detain  Lieutenant-Colonel  Camp- 
bell and  keep  him  in  safe  custody  'till  the  farther  order 
of  Congress,  &c. 

On  February  20,  the  situation  having  appar- 
ently undergone  no  change,  Congress  further 

Resolved,  That  the  Board  of  War  be  directed  immedi- 
ately to  order  the  five  Hessian  field  officers  and  Lieuten- 
ant-Colonel Campbell  into  safe  and  close  custody,  it  being 
the  unalterable  resolution  of  Congress  to  retaliate  on  them 
the  same  punishment  as  may  be  inflicted  on  the  person  of 
General  Lee.  — Journal,  Febmary  2Oth, 


This  order  had  already  been  anticipated  by  the 
authorities  of  Massachusetts,  who,  upon  receiving 
notice  of  the  preliminary  resolve  passed  January  6 


26  SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 

had   ordered    that    Lieutenant-Colonel    Campbell's 
parole  be  annulled,  and  that  he  be  placed  in  the 
keeping    of    the    sheriff    of    Middlesex;    and    on 
February  i,  1777,  the  prisoner  was   committed   to    • 
close  custody  in  the  jail  at  Concord. 

This  jail,  or  "goal,"  as  it  is  almost  invariably 
spelt  in  contemporaneous  writings,  was  a  wooden 
building  standing  upon  ground  adjoining  the  West 
Burying-Ground,  on  Main  Street,  and  now  forming 
part  of  the  estate  of  the  late  Reuben  N.  Rice.  It  was 
two  stories  in  height,  was  built  of  logs  and  had  a 
four-sided  roof.  Near  the  end  of  the  last  century 
it  was  superseded  by  a  larger  structure  of  stone 
which  stood,  until  about  thirty  years  ago,  behind 
the  space  between  the  Middlesex  Hotel  and  the 
County  House,  now  occupied  by  the  Rev.  E.  J. 
Moriarty.  A  picture  of  the  old  wooden  jail, 
which  is  said  to  be  a  drawing  made  by  Camp- 
bell, hangs  in  the  Concord  Public  Library  and 
shows  the  building  as  it  appeared  in  Revolution- 
ary times.  Within  the  recollection  of  persons 
now  living  it  was  used  as  a  hatter's  shop,  and 
later  as  an  adjunct  to  the  stable  of  Bigelow's 
Tavern,  long  since  demolished. 

The  old  jail  was  built  in  the  year  1755,  and  first 
stood  on  land  bought  of  Jonathan  Heywood,  and 
situated  on  Walden  Street  near  the  house  now 
owned  by  Concord's  Home  for  the  Aged.  It 
adjoined  Heywood's  house  on  the  northwest  side, 


S/X    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL.  27 

was  thirty  feet  long  and  twenty-six  feet  wide, 
exclusive  of  entry  and  stairway.  The  sides  and 
lower  floor  of  the  building  were  of  timber  seven 
inches  in  thickness.  The  plan  for  its  construc- 
tion provided  that  it  should  be  "  divided  into  four 
rooms "  on  each  floor. 

In  January,  1756,  it  was  reported  ready  for  the 
victims  of  the  law,  and  Jonathan  Heywood,  a  tan- 
ner by  trade,  was  appointed  under-keeper  and 
soon  afterwards  obtained  an  innholder's  license. 
It  was  common  in  those  days,  here  and  elsewhere 
—  the  combination  of  a  jail  with  a  tavern,  both 
under  one  management.  It  was  a  thrifty  arrange- 
ment; for  imprisoned  debtors  could  obtain  the 
privilege  of  the  "  liberties "  of  the  jail  by  giving 
a  bond  that  they  would  not  attempt  to  escape ; 
and  the  superior  accommodations  afforded  by  the 
inn  close  by,  compared  with  the  ill-kept  rooms  and 
wretched  fare  of  the  prison,  caused  many  a  shilling 
to  be  diverted  from  the  pockets  of  the  prisoners  to 
the  landlord's  capacious  purse.  No  one  then  had 
any  thought  of  prison  reform  in  the  modern  sense 
of  the  term,  but  in  1769  complaints  from  some 
source  were  loud  enough  to  make  the  Court  of 
General  Sessions  of  the  Peace  aware  of  the  fact 
"  that  the  Limits  of  the  Prison  Yard  were  very 
much  too  contracted  and  thereby  rendered  very 
nauseous  &  unwholesome,  and  also  by  Reason  of 
Gutters  for  the  Wash  and  Filth  of  the  Prison 


28  SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 

Keeper's  House  &c  That  the  Prisoners  for  Debt 
&  others  are  debarr'd  from  Water  unless  they 
purchase  the  same."  The  lot  on  which  the  jail 
stood  contained  only  about  one-sixteenth  of  an 
acre,  and,  as  Mr.  Heywood  was  unwilling  to  part 
with  any  more  land,  the  county  bought  of  Captain 
Ephraim  Jones  a  dwelling  -  house  and  about 
one-quarter  of  an  acre  of  land  next  to  the 
burying  -  ground  on  Main  Street,  and  in  the 
early  spring  of  1770,  when  there  was  yet  a  little 
snow  on  the  ground  to  make  things  slip  along 
easily,  the  jail  was  removed  to  the  new  lot,  under 
the  superintendence  of  Joseph  Hosmer,  whose 
courage,  integrity,  and  sound  judgment  five  years 
later,  at  the  North  Bridge,  and  subsequently 
throughout  the  war,  won  the  confidence  and 
respect  of  his  fellow  citizens.  The  removal  was 
facilitated  by  the  use  of  rollers,  and  green  trunks 
of  trees,  called  "  shoes,"  which,  being  made  fast 
underneath,  slid  over  the  slippery  ground  like  the 
runners  of  a  sled.  Twenty-six  pairs  of  oxen  drew 
the  load,  and  no  doubt  large  and  interested  groups 
of  spectators  were  at  hand  to  watch  the  passage 
of  the  home  of  debtors  and  malefactors  along 
the  road  by  the  mill-pond,  around  the  corner  by 
the  old  mill,  and  past  the  burying-ground  to  the 
new  location  prepared  for  it.  From  this  time 
onwards  it  was  connected  with  Jones's  Tavern* 
afterwards  Bigelow's,  and  Captain  Ephraim  Jones 


SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 


29 


was   appointed    keeper    under   the    sheriff   of   the 
county. 

I  find  no  annals  of  this  fortress  of  the  law 
before  the  outbreak  of  the  Revolution.  On 
the  2oth  of  April,  1775,  some  British  soldiers 
wounded  and  captured  on  the  preceding  day 
were  confined  here,  and  from  time  to  time  dur- 
ing the  war  tories  and  prisoners-of-war  were 
consigned  to  its  unpitying  chambers,  in  obedi- 
ence to  the  orders  of  the  Council  at  Boston,  or 
of  a  local  inquisitorial  board,  called  a  committee 
of  correspondence  or  committee  of  inspection. 
There  are  interesting  memorials  of  persons  con- 
fined here,  of  officers  of  the  "  Falcon "  ship-of- 
war  and  the  schooner  "  Volante ;  "  of  Dr.  Josiah 
Jones  and  Dr.  Jonathan  Hicks,  notorious  and 
troublesome  tories,  who,  after  sending  out  in- 
genious and  unavailing  protests,  were  fortunate 
enough  to  be  able  to  cut  the  knot  of  their 
difficulties  by  effecting  their  escape.  There,  too, 
was  young  Robert  Campbell,  only  seventeen  years 
of  age,  who  was  taken  at  Falmouth,  and  proudly 
informed  the  committee  who  were  appointed  to 
examine  and  search  him,  that  he  was  "  son  of 
Lieutenant-Colonel  Alexander  Campbell,  who  is 
now  Lieutenant-Governor  of  Fort  George  in 
Inverness,  and  is  one  of  the  first  families  in 
Scotland."  In  the  language  of  the  report,  "said 
Robert  Campbell  further  says  he  was  born  in 


30  SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 

yc  army  &  now   has   a    Recommendation   for   an 
Ensign's  commission  in  the  35th  Regiment." 

On  September  25,  1775,  a  petition  was  for 
warded  by  Sergeant  Matthew  Hayes,  eight  privates 
of  seven  different  regiments,  and  one  marine,  rep- 
resenting that  the  signers  had  been  confined  in 
this  jail  as  prisoners  of  war  "ever  since  the  igth 
day  of  April  last,"  and  that  they  were  in  need  of 
suitable  clothing  to  cover  their  nakedness  in  the 
approaching  cold  season.  They  were,  in  fact 
taken  on  the  igth,  but  were  not  sent  to  Concord 
until  the  25th,  as  appears  by  the  following  letter 
from  General  Ward  to  Colonel  James  Barrett: 

HEAD  QUARTERS,  APRIL  26th,  1775. 
SIR, 

I  am  informed  that  there  are  a  Number  of  Prisoners 
in  Concord  Goal,  ten  of  which  were  conveyed  thither 
yesterday  that  were  taken  in  the  late  Skirmish,  who  have 
since  that  unhappy  Event,  been  at  Newton  &  done  some 
Labour;  but  being  absent  I  cannot  judge  so  well  whether 
it  is  safe  to  trust  them  as  you  may  on  the  spot :  —  There- 
fore I  refer  it  to  you,  to  do  with  them,  &  any  other  Pris- 
oners of  the  like  sort,  as  you  may  think  best :  pray  keep 
them  from  any  Infection  that  may  arise  from  putting  too 
many  in  one  Room  :  —  air  them  when  necessary  ;  provide 
everything  needful  for  their  comfortable  subsistence:  — 
no  doubt  you  have  things  convenient  for  them  in  Con 
cord ;  &  will  be  at  some  future  time  satisfied  for  your 
trouble. 

I  am  sir  &c 

A.  WARD. 


SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL.  3! 

Moved  by  the  prisoners'  petition,  the  Council 
empowered  and  directed  Ephraim  Wood,  one  of 
the  selectmen,  "  to  provide  one  Coat,  one  pair  of 
Breeches,  one  pair  of  stockings,  one  shirt,  and 
one  pair  of  shoes  "  for  such  as  were  in  need ;  with 
the  assurance  that  the  amount  expended  for  this 
purpose  would  be  refunded.  Let  us  hope  that  the 
faintness  of  the  assurance  did  not  deter  the  select- 
men from  suitably  providing  for  these  men. 

Lieutenant-Colonel  Campbell  was  by  far  the 
most  interesting  inmate  of  the  jail,  and  was  for 
some  time  the  prisoner  of  highest  rank  in  the 
hands  of  the  Americans.  Four  days  after  his 
confinement  he  addressed  a  forcible  but  manly 
and  dignified  letter  to  General  Washington,  de- 
scribing his  surroundings,  and  protesting,  as  one 
soldier  to  another,  against  such  treatment.  He 
addresses  Washington  in  his  supposed  character 
of  "  dictator  "  as  follows : 

CONCORD  GOAL,  4TH  FEB'Y  1777. 
SIR, 

From  the  powers  which  I  have  lately  understood  has 
been  reposed  in  y'r  Excell'y  as  dictator,  and  from  the 
character  I  have  always  entertained  of  y'r  generosity  of 
sentiment,  I  am  naturally  led  to  use  the  freedom  of 
troubling  you  with  the  complaint  of  an  officer,  who 
suffers  at  this  instant  a  treatment  more  notoriously 
dishonourable  &  inhuman  than  has  ever  existed  in  the 
annals  of  any  modern  war.  Y'r  Excell'y  well  knows 
that  I  was  a  prisoner  at  large  upon  my  Parole  of  honour 
in  the  town  of  Reading  since  the  month  of  June  last ; 


32  SfR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 

during  which    period,  I  will  venture  to  pronounce  it  is 
even  beyond  the  power  of  malevolent  aspersion  to  charge 
me  justly  with  the  most  scrupulous  violation.     The  first 
of  this  month  I  was  carried  &  lodged  in  the  common  Goal 
of  Concord  by  an  order  of  Congress,  thro'  the  council  of 
Boston  ;  intimating  for  a  reason,  that  a  refusal  of  Gen'l 
Howe  to  give  up  Gen'l  Lee  for  six  field  officers,  of  whom 
I  was  one,  and  the  placing  of  that  Gentleman  under  the 
charge  of  the  Provost  at  New-York  were  the  motives  of 
their  particular  ill-treatment  of  me.      How  far  these  as- 
sertions may  be  founded  on  real  matter  of  fact,  &  appear 
to   your   Excell'cy   consistent   with   Justice  &  the   usual 
practices    in  war,  I  shall  not    pretend  to  determine,  but 
when  you  are  well  informed  of  the  real  circumstances  of 
my  present  situation,  of  which  I  am  persuaded  you  are 
still  ignorant,  you  will  be  a  better  judge  of  my  usage, 
&  weigh  as  a  soldier    its    propriety.     I    am    lodged  in  a 
dungeon  of   about   12  or  13  feet  square,  doubly  planked 
and  spiked  on  every  side,  black  with  the  grease  and  litter 
of   successive  criminals  &  completely  hung  around  with 
cobwebs.     Two    small  windows,  or  portholes,  not    glaz'd 
but   strongly   grated    w'th    Iron    on    the    inside  and  well 
barricaded  with  shutters  on  the  out,  introduce  a  gloomy 
light   to   the   apartment.      Two  doors  doubly  planked  & 
locked,  shut  me  from  the  prisoners  yard,  and  the  Goaler 
has  rec'd  express  orders  against  my  going  into  it,  even 
for  the  necessary  calls  of   nature,  and  an  hole  near  the 
middle  of  these  doors  serves  either  to  admit  my  victuals, 
or   gratify   the   gaping   curiosity   of    spectators.     In   the 
corner  of  the  room  boxed  up  to  the  partition  a  wooden 
necessary  house  stands  uncovered,  which  does  not  seem 
to  have  been  emptied   since  the  first   hour  of  its  being 
consecrated   to    the    natural   ease    of   malefactors,   and  a 
more  loathsome  black  hole  decorated  with  chains  &  Iron 
rings  well  rivetted  &  clinched  is  granted   me  from  my 
inner  chamber,  from  whence  a  notorious  Felon  was  but 
the  moment  before  removed  to  make  way  for  y'r  humble 


SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL.  33 

serv't,  and  in  which  his  litter  and  his  Excrement  still 
actually  remain.  This  noisy  malefactor  occupies  the 
dungeon  on  my  left,  and  a  few  Highlanders  of  the  7ist. 
Reg't.  under  the  same  restrictions  and  hardships  with 
myself,  for  having  refused  to  work  for  the  Americans 
without  pay,  are  my  quieter  neighbors  on  the  right.  I 
am  even  refused  from  council,  the  attendance  of  a  single 
servant  on  my  person,  and  every  kind  of  intercourse  or 
correspondence  denied,  except  what  passes  through  the 
medium  of  the  Coaler.  In  short,  sir,  to  complete  the 
whole,  such  is  my  situation,  was  a  fire  to  take  place  in 
any  one  of  the  chambers,  (which  are  all  wood  excepting 
the  mere  chimney  stacks)  the  whole  of  its  Inhabitants 
must  perish  before  the  Goaler  could  go  through  the 
ceremony  of  unlocking  the  doors,  notwithstanding  I 
think  him  a  man  of  humanity  ;  because  his  house  is  so 
remote  from  the  Goal,  any  call  or  noise  from  within 
might  be  difficult,  especially  in  stormy  weather  to  be 
heard.  I  cannot  also  help  representing  to  your  Excell'y 
the  case  of  Capt.  Jno.  Walker,  bearing  his  Majesty's 
Commission  in  Col.  Gorham's  Corps.  This  Gentleman 
is  huddled  into  the  same  Goal  &  apartment  with  the 
common  men,  a  treatment  highly  inconsistent  with  his 
rank. 

Thus,  sir,  have  I  briefly  laid  before  you  without  exag- 
geration the  real  state  of  my  treatment,  and  your  own 
feelings  as  an  officer  will  suggest  how  far  it  is  consistent 
with  the  principles  of  Justice  to  suffer  such  dishonour  to 
be  inflicted  on  a  Gentleman,  whose  only  crime  is  that  of 
being  a  Lieut.  Col.  in  the  service  of  his  Brittannick 
Majesty.  When  I  was  first  taken  prisoner  into  Boston, 
I  rec'd  from  those  who  took  me  and  the  controuling 
power  there,  the  fairest  promises  unasked,  of  my  being 
certain  of  Gentlemanly  treatment.  And  your  Excell'y 
and  they  are  no  strangers  to  the  Justice  I  render'd  the 
Americans  by  the  most  handsome  representations  to 
Gen'l  Howe  &  my  friends  in  Britain  by  the  letters 


34 


SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 


which  lately  passed  thro'  your  hands.  But  I  am  per- 
suaded y'r  Excell'y  is  still  ignorant  of  the  early  shameful 
return  made  me  for  a  well  meant  endeaver  to  suppress 
what  but  too  often  happens  in  such  unhappy  controversies 
The  chance  of  ill  grounded  misrepresentation.  Sir,  the 
truth  is,  that  eight  days  had  scarcely  elapsed  after  my 
first  address  to  Gen'l  Howe  when  I  was  actually  plundered 
of  half  my  private  property ;  the  very  necessary  articles 
of  living,  by  the  Continental  Agent  Capt.  Bradford '  of 
Boston,  who  has  since  (as  I  am  informed)  seiz'd  upon 
and  disposed  of  for  the  dirty  consideration  of  Gain,  the 
very  side  arms  of  my  officers,  to  whom  they  had  been 
restored  by  the  captors  after  the  action,  &  afterwards 
lodged  in  the  hands  of  Major  Chase  at  Boston  by  order 
of  Gen'l  Ward. 

I   should   not   have   troubled   your   Excell'y   with   so 
disagreeable  a  recital,  were  I  not  from  my  soul  persuaded, 


1  Captain  John  Bradford  was  styled  "  Agent  of  the  Continental 
armed  vessels."  He  wrote  a  letter  indignantly  denying  the  charges 
laid  at  his  door,  but  I  have  been  unable  to  find  it. 

"The  very  necessary  articles  of  living"  are   more  particularly 
described  in  a  letter  from  Campbell  to  the  Council,  dated  April  2, 
1777  (Mass.  Archives,  Vol.  196,  p.  357),  as  follows : 
I  Cask  Westphalia  Hams 
I    Do   Corn  Beef 

1  Do   Salt  Butter 

5    Do   Containing  45  Dozen  of  Wine. 

Total          8  casks. 
Also 

44  Dozn  of  Wine 

20  Dozn  of  Bottled  Porter 

10  Dozn  of  Bottled  Beer 

2  Cases  of  Portable  Canteens 

2  Tents  and  marquees  for  a  Field  off''  with  their  apparatus 

complete 
I  Do  for  servants 
i  new  Spanish  Cloak 
i  set  of  Breakfast  China. 


SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 


35 


you  equally  abhor  as  I  heartily  despise  a  treatment  so 
exceedingly  cruel,  mean  &  ungenerous,  and  I  now  look 
forward  to  you  for  redress. 

I  have  the  honour  to  be  respectfully 
Sir,  Y'r  Excell'cy's  much 
injured  h'ble  serv't, 

ARCH'D.  CAMPBELL  Lt.  Col. 

7 1  st.  Regt. 
His  Excell'cy 

Gen.  Washington. 

Ten  days  later,  on  February  14,  Campbell 
wrote  to  Sir  William  Howe  a  similar  description 
of  his  circumstances,  in  order  that  his  lot  might 
be  compared  with  the  treatment  of  General  Lee 
in  New  York.  These  letters  were  received  about 
the  same  time,  —  one  by  Washington  at  Morris- 
town,  and  the  other  by  Howe  at  New  York. 
Howe  at  once  sent  a  courteous  remonstrance  to 
the  American  commander,  asserting  that  Camp- 
bell had  "  an  indubitable  right "  to  be  exchanged, 
and  that  putting  him  in  close  confinement  was 
"contrary  to  the  tenor  of  his  parole,  which  is 
binding  on  both  parties." 

Throughout  the  colonies  the  people  had  been 
stirred  up  by  stories  of  atrocities  committed  by 
the  enemy,  and  their  minds  filled  with  appre- 
hensions of  new  horrors  to  come.  Negotiations 
for  an  exchange  of  prisoners  were  not  favored 
by  Congress  and  were  easily  hampered  and 
obstructed  in  many  ways,  as  was  the  case  in  the 


36  SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 

war  of  the  Rebellion.  The  excitement  found  a 
vent  in  the  retaliatory  resolves  passed  by  Con- 
gress. These  votes  undoubtedly  expressed  the 
popular  feeling  of  the  moment ;  but  Washington 
showed  himself  superior  to  the  easily  aroused 
indignation  of  a  people  engaged  in  a  hand-to- 
hand  struggle,  and  the  wisdom  of  choosing  him 
to  the  supreme  command  of  the  army  has  no 
better  proof  or  illustration  than  is  afforded  in 
the  conduct  of  this  episode  in  our  national 
history.  The  severity  shown  to  an  officer  of 
Campbell's  rank  caused  the  General  great  annoy- 
ance, at  a  time,  too,  when  all  his  vigilance  was 
sorely  needed  for  the  direction  of  active  ope- 
rations at  the  seat  of  war.  Here,  however,  was 
a  wrong,  and  he  promptly  undertook  to  right 
it,  so  far  as  it  lay  in  his  power  to  do  so. 

The  first  thing  was  to  write  a  letter,  dated 
February  28,  to  Colonel  James  Bowdoin  and 
the  Massachusetts  Council,  in  which  he  refers 
to  Campbell's  letter,  saying,  "  It  gives  me  such 
an  account  of  the  severity  of  his  confinement 
as  is  scarce  ever  inflicted  upon  the  most  atro- 
cious criminals."  The  resolve  of  Congress, 
passed  January  6,  1777,  is  quoted  in  order  to 
show  that  the  order  of  the  Massachusetts  Coun- 
cil was  not  justified  "upon  the  most  strict  in- 
terpretation of  the  resolve."  The  General  then 
expresses  his  wish  that  immediately  upon  the 


SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL.  37 

receipt  of  this  letter,  the  prisoner  may  be  "  re- 
moved from  his  present  situation  and  put  into 
a  house  where  he  may  live  comfortably."  Ap- 
parently the  order  of  February  20,  addressed  by 
Congress  to  the  Board  of  War,  had  not  yet  been 
communicated  to  the  Commander-in-Chief,  for 
after  touching  upon  other  matters  complained  of, 
a  postscript  suggests  that  "  Colonel  Campbell's 
Confinement  may  be  enlarged,  without  assigning 
the  Reasons  publicly."  The  next  day  Washington 
received  notice  of  the  new  resolve  and  courteously 
replied  to  Campbell's  protest  in  the  following 
admirable  letter  (Sparks,  "  Writings,"  Vol.  iv,  p. 
333): 

MORRISTOWN,  i  MARCH,  1777. 
SIR, 

I  last  night  received  the  favor  of  your  letter,  and  am 
much  obliged  by  the  opinion  you  are  pleased  to  entertain 
of  me.  I  am  not  invested  with  the  powers  you  suppose ; 
and  it  is  as  incompatible  with  my  authority,  as  my  inclina- 
tion, to  contravene  any  determination  Congress  may  make. 
But  as  it  does  not  appear  to  me,  that  your  present  treat- 
ment is  required  by  any  resolution  of  theirs,  but  is  the 
result  of  misconception,  I  have  written  my  opinion  of 
the  matter  to  Colonel  Bowdoin,  which,  I  imagine,  will 
procure  a  mitigation  of  what  you  now  suffer.  I  have 
also  requested,  that  inquiry  be  made  into  the  case  of 
Captain  Walker,  and  proper  steps  taken  to  remove  all 
just  cause  of  complaint  concerning  him.  I  shall  always 
be  happy  to  manifest  my  disinclination  to  any  undue 
severities  towards  those  whom  the  fortune  of  war  may 
chance  to  throw  into  my  hands. 

I  am  &c. 

84380 


38  SIR  ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 

In  a  letter  to  the  President  of  Congress,  of  the 
same  date,  Washington  says  (Sparks,  Vol.  iv,  p.  334) : 

I  was  this  evening  honored  with  your  favor  of  the  23d 
ultimo,  accompanied  by  sundry  proceedings  of  Congress. 
Those  respecting  General  Lee,  which  prescribe  the  treat- 
ment of  Lieutenant-Colonel  Campbell  and  the  five  Hessian 
field-officers,  are  the  cause  of  this  letter.  Though  I  sin- 
cerely commiserate  the  misfortunes  of  General  Lee,  and 
feel  much  for  his  present  unhappy  situation,  yet,  with  all 
possible  deference  to  the  opinion  of  Congress,  I  fear  that 
these  resolutions  will  not  have  the  desired  effect,  are 
founded  in  impolicy,  and  will  if  adhered  to,  produce 
consequences  of  an  extensive  and  melancholy  nature. 
Retaliation  is  certainly  just,  and  sometimes  necessary, 
even  where  attended  with  the  severest  penalties ;  but, 
when  the  evils  which  may  and  must  result  from  it  exceed 
those  intended  to  be  redressed,  prudence  and  policy  re 
quire  that  it  should  be  avoided.  Having  premised  thus 
much,  I  beg  leave  to  examine  the  justice  and  expediency 
of  it  in  the  instances  now  before  us.  ...  Gen'l.  Lee's 
usage  has  not  been  so  disgraceful  and  dishonorable  as  to 
authorize  the  treatment  decreed  to  these  gentlemen  .  .  . 
Here  retaliation  seems  to  have  been  prematurely  begun  ; 
or,  to  speak  with  more  propriety,  severities  have  been  and 
are  exercised  towards  Colonel  Campbell  not  justified  by 
any  that  General  Lee  has  yet  received  .  .  .  The  mischiefs 
which  may  and  must  inevitably  flow  from  the  execution  of 
the  resolves  appear  to  be  endless  and  innumerable  .  .  . 
Persuading  myself  that  Congress  will  indulge  the  liberty 
I  have  taken  upon  the  occasion,  I  have  only  to  wish  for 
the  result  of  their  deliberations  after  they  have  recon- 
sidered the  resolves,  and  to  assure  them  that  I  have  the 
honor  to  be  &c. 

Unwilling  to  let  his  appeal  rest  on  this  letter 
alone,    Washington   wrote    an   earnest   letter    the 


SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 


39 


next  day  to  Robert  Morris,  begging  him  to  use 
his  influence  with  Congress  to  annul  the  resolves. 
"  Indeed,  sir,"  he  writes,  "  your  observations  on  the 
want  of  many  capital  characters  in  that  senate 
Congress  are  but  too  just." '  He  says  that  the 
resolves  were  "entered  into  without  due  attention 
to  consequences,"  and  were  "fraught  with  every 
evil."  After  alluding  to  other  business,  he  recurs 
to  the  matter  which  caused  him  the  most  concern, 
saying,  "  But  the  other  matter,  relative  to  the  con- 
finement of  the  officers,  is  what  I  am  particularly 
anxious  about,  as  I  think  it  will  involve  much  more 
than  Congress  have  any  idea  of,  and  that  they 
surely  will  repent  adhering  to  their  unalterable 
resolution."  By  another  letter  dated  March  3d, 
Washington  replied  to  Howe  reciting  what  he 
had  done  in  behalf  of  Colonel  Campbell  since  he 
first  heard  of  his  situation  on  the  last  day  of 
February,  and  adding :  "  I  trust  his  situation  will 
be  made  more  agreeable,  it  being  my  wish  that 
every  reasonable  indulgence  and  act  of  humanity 
should  be  done  to  those  whom  the  fortune  of  war 
has  or  may  put  into  our  hands." 

In  spite,  however,  of  the  earnest  remonstrances 
of  Washington,  it  was  resolved,  on  March  14, 
that  he  be  informed  that  "  Congress  cannot  agree 
to  any  alteration  in  the  Resolve  passed  on  the 


1  It  was  wittily  said  by  Gouverneur  Morris  that   this  Congress 
had  depreciated  as  much  as  the  currency. 


40  SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 

6th  January  1777. —  And  as  to  the  complaints 
of  Colo.  Campbell,  it  was  never  their  Intention 
that  he  should  suffer  any  other  Hardship  than 
such  Confinement  as  is  necessary  to  his  Security 
for  the  purpose  of  that  Resolve." 

Upon  receipt  of  Washington's  letter  of  Febru- 
ary 28,  the  Council  of  Massachusetts  voted  that, 
"Whereas  the  Goal  at  Concord  where  Lieut. 
Colo'l  Campbell  is  now  confined  is  represented 
as  a  place  quite  different  from  what  it  was  sup- 
posed to  be  when  Colo'l  Campbell  was  ordered 
there  to  be  retained  and  kept  in  Custody  —  there- 
fore Francis  Dana  Esq.1  is  desired  as  soon  as  may 
be  to  repair  to  Concord  and  examine  into  the  state 
of  the  said  Goal  and  in  case  Colo'l  Campbell  can  be 
accommodated  with  a  room  in  the  Coaler's  House," 
he  is  to  be  allowed  the  privilege  of  the  yard,  on 
giving  his  parole.  This  partial  relief  was  obtained 
on  March  6,  and  one  servant,  Peter  Ferguson,  was 
permitted  to  attend  him.  Thus,  after  being  con- 
fined for  a  month  the  prisoner  was  allowed  a 
larger  liberty;  he  had  a  room  in  the  tavern  near 
by,  was  allowed  one  servant,  and  was  permitted 
to  move  about  in  a  certain  limited  space  called 
the  "  liberties  of  the  jail." 

On  March  17,  in  a  letter  to  the  Council,  he 
gratefully  acknowledges  the  mitigation  of  his 


Afterwards   Chief  Justice   of  the   Supreme  Judicial   Court  of 
Massachusetts. 


Sf£    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL.  41 

treatment,  but  asks  permission  to  return  to  his 
house  in  Reading  and  reside  there  on  parole. 
"  The  motives,"  he  says,  "  I  had  in  view  by  such  a 
request  were  a  peaceable  retirement  from  the 
tumultuous  noise  of  a  Publick  Tavern,  and  a 
reasonable  deliverance  from  insult,  to  which  I  am 
at  present  unavoidably  exposed,  from  the  lowest 
class  of  passengers,  and  of  which  I  experience 
almost  every  day  fresh  and  repeated  instances, 
more  shameless  than  I  would  even  choose  to 
express."  This  request  was  refused.  Then  came 
a  succession  of  letters  in  which  Campbell  acknowl- 
edged that  the  treatment  of  him  proceeded  from 
political  necessity  and  misconception  of  facts,  and 
not  from  any  desire  to  persecute  him,  and  asked 
that  he  might  be  permitted  to  live  in  a  house  with 
his  own  servants.  Concord  people  appear  to  have 
treated  him  well.  At  least  he  calls  Captain  Jones, 
the  jailer,  a  kind-hearted  man.  He  made  the  ac- 
quaintance of  Duncan  Ingraham  and  his  wife, 
formerly  Mrs.  Merrick,  who  lived  across  the  way, 
and,  incidentally,  of  young  Tilly  Merrick,  whose 
mother,  Mrs.  Ingraham,  kindly  took  the  stranger 
into  her  house  and  nursed  him  when  he  was  ill.1 
On  May  17,  1777,  the  Council  administered  a 


1  Twice  during  the  war  young  Merrick  had  occasion  to  cross 
the  Atlantic  as  attach^  to  an  embassy,  and  on  both  occasions  was 
captured  by  the  British.  The  second  time  he  was  so  fortunate  as 
to  meet  with  Colonel  Campbell,  who  greeted  him  cordially  and 
exerted  himself  in  his  behalf. 


42  SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 

rebuke  to  "  Mr.  Nathan  Stow  Clerk  of  the  Comtee 
of  Correspondence  &c  at  Concord  "  for  permitting 
Campbell  to  send  a  letter  to  Cambridge  by  the 
hand  of  one  of  the  prisoners : 

"  The  Board  are  much  dissatisfied  with  your  conduct 
in  permitting  a  Highland  prisoner  of  war  under  your  care 
at  Concord  to  go  to  Cambridge,  only  to  carry  a  Letter 
from  Col.  Campbell,  which  might  easily  have  been  sent 
by  other  conveyances.  This  man  went  at  large  at  Cam- 
bridge for  three  days  together,  and  took  a  view  of  every 
thing,  and  conversed  with  every  person  he  pleased.  The 
Board  are  of  opinion  that  it  is  extremely  dangerous  to 
allow  such  liberties  to  Prisoners  of  War  and  expect  that 
for  the  future  the  Comtee  will  take  effectual  care  that  no 
prisoner  of  war  shall  be  permitted  to  go  without  the  limits 
of  the  Town. 

By  order  of  the  Council." 

On  May  22,  1777,  Howe  again  protested  to 
Washington,  "  It  is  with  concern  I  receive  fre- 
quent accounts  of  the  ill-treatment  still  exercised 
upon  Lieutenant-Colonel  Campbell,  which  I  had 
reason  to  flatter  myself  you  would  have  pre- 
vented. He  has,  it  is  true,  been  taken  out  of  a 
common  dungeon,  where  he  had  been  confined, 
with  a  degree  of  rigour,  that  the  most  atrocious 
crimes  would  not  have  justified ;  but  he  is  still 
kept  in  the  jailer's  house,  exposed  to  daily  insult 
from  the  deluded  populace.  This  usage  being 
repugnant  to  every  sentiment  of  humanity,  and 
highly  unworthy  the  character  you  profess,  I  am 
compelled  to  repeat  my  complaints  against  it,  and 


SIX    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 


43 


to  claim  immediate  redress  to  this  much  injured 
gentleman."  (Sparks,  Vol.  iv,  p.  559.) 

The  American  general  complained  to  Congress 
that,  notwithstanding  his  recommendation,  Camp- 
bell's treatment  continued  to  be  such  as  "  cannot 
be  justified  either  on  the  principles  of  generosity 
or  strict  retaliation." 

A  letter  written  by  General  Lee  "  to  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  State  or  Convention  of  Massachusetts 
Bay"  (Mass.  Archives,  Vol.  197,  p.  25),  was  received 
about  this  time  and  helped  to  clear  up  the  ques- 
tions of  fact  involved.  The  following  is  a  copy : 

"NEW  YORK  MAY  ye  7th  1777. 
SIR 

It  is  with  the  greatest  concern  (altho  it  is  somewhat 
flattering  to  me)  that  I  learn  a  misrepresentation  of  the 
treatment  I  receive  has  been  the  occasion  of  Colonel 
Campbel  and  some  other  Gentlemen  Prisoners  with  you 
being  closely  confin'd  and  in  other  respects  harshly  dealt 
with.  Sir  William  Howe  as  a  servant  of  the  Public 
thinks  it  is  incumbent  upon  him  to  guard  me  securely 
but  I  give  you  my  word  and  honour  that  from  the  begin- 
ning I  have  been  treated  with  tenderness  generosity  and 
respect  —  gratitude  truth  and  humanity  impose  it  upon 
me  as  a  duty  to  undeceive  you  on  this  head,  and  I  am 
confident,  the  instant  you  are  undeceived,  that  Colonel 
Campbel  and  the  rest  of  the  Gentlemen  will  have  reason 
to  be  convinced  that  what  they  have  suffered  ought  not 
be  attributed  to  an  illiberal  way  of  thinking  or  want  of 
humanity  in  those  who  have  the  direction  of  affairs  in 
Boston,  but  to  the  privilege  of  self  defence  which  fre- 
quently in  times  of  civil  contest  obliges  us  to  assume  a 
severity  repugnant  to  our  natures,  and  I  can  venture  to 


44  SIX    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 

say  that  severity  and  harshness  is  not  the  characteristic 
of  New  England  —  In  short  I  flatter  myself  and  am  per- 
suaded that  the  moment  you  receive  this  note,  Colonel 
Campbel  and  the  other  Gentlemen  will  be  put  in  the  situ- 
ation which  their  rank  and  character  entitle  'em  to. 

I  beg  you  will  believe  and  assure  the  other  Gentlemen 
of  the  State  that  I  remain,  sir,  your  and  their  most  de- 
voted humble  serv't 

CHARLES  LEE." 


On  the  authority  of  Thomas  Jones,  a  tory 
justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  Province  of 
New  York,  who  published  a  history  of  his  times, 
we  learn  that  Lee  lived  "  in  genteel  apartments, 
supplied  at  the  expense  of  the  nation  with 
all  the  luxuries  that  New  York  could  afford, 
had  friends  to  dine  with  him,  a  good  bed  to  sleep 
upon,  into  which  he  tumbled  jovially  mellow 
every  night ;  for,  to  do  him  justice,  he  loved  good 
fellowship,  a  long  set,  a  good  dinner,  and  a  con- 
vivial glass,  when  he  could  enjoy  them  at  any 
other  expense  than  his  own."  He  says  further: 
"  General  Lee  was  confined  in  the  Council  Cham- 
ber in  the  City  Hall,  one  of  the  genteelest  public 
rooms  in  the  City,  square,  compact,  tight  and 
warm.  A  sentry,  it  is  true,  stood  at  his  door.  His 
fire-wood  and  candles  were  provided  for  him.  He 
had  directions  to  order  a  dinner  every  day  from  a 
public  house,  sufficient  for  six  people,  with  what 
liquor  he  wanted,  and  of  what  kind  he  pleased. 
He  had  the  privilege  of  asking  any  five  friends  he 


SIR    ARCH/BALD    CAMPBELL. 


45 


thought  proper  to  dine  with  him  each  day.  This 
was  all  furnished  at  the  expense  of  the  nation. 
Hull,  who  kept  the  City  Arms,  in  New  York, 
waited  upon  him  by  General  Howe's  orders,  with  a 
bill  of  fare  every  morning,  and  Lee  ordered  his 
own  dinner  and  his  own  liquors.  It  was  cooked 
at  Hull's  and  always  upon  the  table  at  the  time 
appointed.  His  servant  had  free  access  to  him  at 
all  times." 

Soon  after  the  receipt  of  Lee's  letter,  Campbell 
was  allowed  to  hire  a  house  outside  the  jail  limits, 
which  he  describes  as  "  situated  close  under  a  high 
wooded  bank,  and  surrounded  with  Marshes,  in  a 
manner  totally  excluded  from  the  air  and  perfectly 
exposed  to  the  sultry  heats  of  the  sun."  He  at 
length  began  to  suffer  from  bilious  fever,  and  was 
attended  by  Dr.  Danforth  of  Boston  and  the  sur- 
geon's mate  of  his  own  regiment. 

The  following  letter  is  preserved  in  the  Massa- 
chusetts Archives  (Vol.  197,  f .  44) : 

"LIBERTIES  OF  CONCORD  GOAL  nth  May  1777 

GENTLEMEN 

After  repeated  testimonies  exhibited  in  the  Publick 
prints  of  Boston,  with  respect  to  Gen'l  Lee  being  treated 
as  a  Gentleman  in  his  confinement ;  I  hope  I  may  again 
be  permitted  the  liberty  of  addressing  the  Candour  of 
your  Hon'ble  Board,  on  the  propriety  of  my  removal 
from  the  common  Goal  of  Concord ;  where  I  am  sorry  to 
observe,  I  experience  at  this  late  hour  a  degree  of  usage 
less  becoming  than  the  just  principles  of  Retaliation 
require. 


46  SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 

In  my  letter  of  the  i/th  of  March,  addressed  to  the 
Hon'ble  The  President  of  Council,  I  stated  the  extreme 
inconvenience  and  impropriety  of  my  situation  at  Con- 
cord, together  with  the  objects  I  had  in  view  by  the 
moderate  request  of  a  removal ;  and  I  would  hope  your 
Hon'ble  Board  on  a  Reconsideration  of  the  matter,  may 
be  pleased  at  this  juncture,  to  honour  that  request  with  a 
compliance ;  at  least  so  far  that  I  may  be  removed  with 
my  servants  and  effects  to  some  retired  habitation  in  the 
Country,  and  with  a  guard  upon  my  person  (if  thought 
necessary)  a  ceremonious  security  better  adapted  to  the 
distinction  and  feelings  of  a  British  Lieut.  Col.  against 
whom  there  is  no  personal  charge,  than  that  which  I  at 
present  experience  by  being  ignominiously  placed  under 
the  charge  of  a  Goal  keeper.  But  should  reasons  of 
Policy  render  it  expedient  to  remove  me  at  a  greater 
distance  from  Boston,  than  my  former  abode  at  Reading, 
I  should  esteem  it  a  singular  act  of  kindness  in  your 
Hon'ble  Board,  to  fix  my  residence  henceforth  at  Dun- 
stable,  or  at  Lancaster;  towns,  which  I  understand  are 
pleasant  in  their  situations,  weell  supplied  in  provisions, 
and  where  there  are  at  this  period  tollerable  accommoda- 
tions to  Lett. 

I  have  here  annexed  for  your  Hon'ble  Board  the  list 
of  servants  I  wish  to  have  along  with  me  in  my  confine- 
ment ;  as  they  are  all  at  Reading,  one  excepted  who  is 
here  with  me,  named  Peter  Ferguson.  I  shall  consider 
it  as  an  additional  obligation  to  receive  your  Order  for 
their  being  sent  to  whatever  quarter  you  are  pleased  to 
allot  for  my  future  residence  ;  together  with  my  Baggage 
and  those  articles  belonging  to  me  which  are  now  lying 
at  Reading. 

Gen'l  Heath  having  signified  that  an  equal  number  of 
Americans  ought  to  be  released  on  their  paroles,  to  com- 
pensate for  the  indulgence  of  granting  me  these  servants, 
I  sent  him  a  letter  of  Certificate  addressed  to  the  British 
Commissary  for  Prisoners  of  War  at  Rhode  Island,  and  I 


SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 


47 


doubt  not  but  a  matter  of  such  justice  will  be  strictly 
agreed  to  by  that  gentleman  on  the  certificate  being 
presented. 

I  have  the  honour  to  be  with  due  respect 
Gentlemen 

Your  most  obed't  Humble  servt. 
ARCH'D  CAMPBELL 

Lieut.  Col.  7 1  st.  Regt. 

List  of  Servants 
Clerk    —  John  Wilson  —  volunteer 

Groom  —  David  Johnston  )  „  . 

r<     i  A     v»j  c"i  £  Private  Soldiers 

Cook     —  Arch  d  Silver     ) 

Do.  Wife  and  2  Children 

Servants  (William  Boyd)  )  ,,  .      .,.       , 

„  (  t  Not  soldiers  but  as 

(Peter  Ferguson)  ) 

Prisoners  of  War  Classed 
as  such. 


The  Hon'ble  Council  of  Massachusetts  Bay." 
Again,  on   May  26,  1777,  the  following  letter 
was  addressed  to  the  Council : 

"  GENTLEMEN, 

Lest  it  should  not  be  consistent  with  your  sentiments 
to  grant  me,  even  at  this  late  period,  the  indulgence  of 
being  removed  from  the  Liberties  of  a  Goal ;  the  follow- 
ing request  will,  I  hope,  be  deemed  by  your  Hon'ble  Board 
not  to  interfere  with  the  nature  of  that  determination. 

Within  the  Liberties  of  the  Goal  at  Concord  stands  a 
house  (which  I  understand  is  the  County  house)  at  present 
in  the  possession  of  Mr.  Coverly,  a  Printer,  who  means  in 
a  few  days  to  evacuate  it.  As  this  house  has  a  Kitchen  in 
it,  and  such  other  apartments  as  might  for  the  present 
accommodate  me  and  my  servants  in  a  tollerable  degree 


48  SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 

of  Comfort,  I  beg  leave  to  solicit  your  Hon'ble  Board  for 
permission  to  Rent  and  occupy  it,  with  my  servants  and 
Baggage,  till  such  time  as  it  may  be  your  pleasure  to  dis- 
pose of  me  in  a  manner  better  suited  to  my  circumstances, 
as  a  Prisoner  of  War.  By  this  indulgence  I  shall  be  freed 
from  the  tumultuous  noise  of  irregular  Company  and  in  a 
great  measure  removed  from  that  unavoidable  interference 
with  Passengers  and  other  visitors,  to  whose  insults  I  am 
even  at  this  hour  exposed  by  my  residence  at  a  Tavern 
upon  the  Publick  Road. 

I  shall  nevertheless  be  within  the  liberties  of  the  Goal, 
and  shall  engage  on  my  Parole  of  honour,  that  my  servants 
shall  strictly  conform  themselves  to  the  same  limitations 
and  restrictions  to  which  I  am  at  present  confined.  The 
honour  of  your  approbation  to  this  request  will  lay  me 
under  a  singular  obligation,  and  convince  me  that  although 
I  have  the  present  misfortune  to  be  under  the  present 
unmerited  confinement,  from  motives  of  political  necessity, 
yet  the  Generosity  of  your  Hon'ble  Board  is  disposed  to 
soften  the  rigour  of  that  necessity  by  such  an  act  of  kind- 
ness as  may  render  my  confinement  as  comfortable  as  the 
nature  of  the  present  circumstances  will  admit. 

I  have  the  honour  to  be  with  all  due  respect 
Gentlemen, 

Your  most  obedient  and 
most  humble  servant, 

ARCH°  CAMPBELL 

Lieut  Colo'l  71!!  Regt. 

Liberties  of  Concord  Goal 
May  the  26th  1777. 

The  Hon'ble  Council  of  Massachusetts  Bay." 


The  following  letter,  which  bears  no  date,  was 
addressed  to  one  of  his  lieutenants,  and  is  interest- 


SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL.  ^ 

ing  evidence  of  Campbell's  relations  to  his  subordi- 
nate officers : 

"DEAR    SlR, 

It  would  have  afforded  me  much  pleasure  to  have  had 
it  in  my  power  to  agree  to  your  being  exchanged,  did  the 
Interest  of  His  Majesty's  service  correspond  with  my 
wishes  for  your  ease  and  comfort.  For  me  to  allow  all 
the  officers  of  the  /ist  to  quit  their  men,  on  the  present 
critical  state  of  our  affairs  would  indicate  a  degree  of  in- 
consistency in  my  conduct,  different  to  what  my  friends 
would  have  expected  of  me  ;  and  for  that  reason,  I  have 
determined  that  Lt.  Fraser  of  the  Light  Infantry,  Lieut. 
McLean  of  the  Gren'ds,  &  Ensign  Fraser  of  McKenzie's 
Company  shall  not  be  exchanged  till  something  shall  ulti- 
mately be  determined  upon  with  respect  to  the  exchange 
of  our  Private  Soldiers.  Having  hourly  expectation  of 
receiving  our  clothing  for  those  poor  fellows,  it  is  neces- 
sary that  an  officer  of  each  company  shall  take  charge  of 
the  same  and  distribute  them  to  the  men.  Surely  you 
Gentlemen  cannot  expect  that  I  must  execute  your  duty 
in  this  respect ;  or  that  the  men  when  they  are  exchanged 
shall  not  have  a  single  off'r  to  head  or  conduct  them  to 
quarters  but  the  Lt.  Colo'l. 

I  am  sorry  to  hear  of  your  misfortune  in  matters  of 
intrigue.  If  the  town  is  too  Hot  for  you,  let  Fraser  and 
you  Petition  to  go  to  Dunstable ;  where  there  is  an  excel- 
lent House,  cheap  living,  and  kindly  neighbors  to  associate 
with,  or  to  any  more  favourable  spot  in  which  you  can  live 
in  peace  and  Quiet.  Make  my  desire  on  this  subject 
known  to  Ensign  Fraser ;  and  acquaint  him  that  there 
has  not  a  single  letter  come  from  the  Cartel  that  went  to 
New  York. 

I  have  as  yet  had  no  account  of  your  Clothes  from 
Capt.  Smith ;  and  I  must  tell  you  that  I  have  reason  to 
believe  that  Gentleman  has  too  little  interest  at  Boston  to 
serve  you  (if  occasion  required)  in  the  object  of  a  Partial 


50  SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 

Exchange.     Content  yourself,  my  friend,  with  the  disap- 
pointment.     Soldiers   must   expect   such   trifles   now   & 
then,  but  be  assured,  that  such  as  it  may  appear  to  you 
at  present,  no  detriment  shall  fall  to  your  Lot,  or  that  of 
any  other  of  the  Officers  on  account  of  it. 
I  am  sincerely  your  friend 
ARCH'D  CAMPBELL, 

Lieut.  Colo'l  7  ist  Regt. 

P.  S.     Tell   Duncanson    that    this    letter   is   also   an 
answer  to  his  request." 
On  the  back : 

"Lieut.  McLean 

7ist  Regt        Upton." 

On  June  10,  1777,  Washington  wrote  frankly 
in  reply  to  General  Howe: 

"  The  situation  of  Lieutenant  Colonel  Campbell,  as 
represented  by  you,  is  such  as  I  neither  wished  nor 
approve.  Upon  the  first  intimation  of  his  complaints, 
I  wrote  upon  the  subject,  and  hoped  there  would  have 
been  no  further  cause  of  uneasiness.  That  gentleman, 
I  am  persuaded,  will  do  me  the  justice  to  say  he  has 
received  no  ill  treatment  at  my  instance.  Unnecessary 
severity  and  every  species  of  insult  I  despise,  and,  I 
trust,  none  will  ever  have  just  reason  to  censure  me  in 
this  respect.  I  have  written  again  on  your  remonstrance, 
and  have  no  doubt  such  a  line  of  conduct  will  be  adopted 
as  will  be  consistent  with  the  dictates  of  humanity  and 
agreeable  to  both  his  and  your  wishes." 

At  length,  on  August  19,  Washington  received 
authority  from  Congress  to  admit  Campbell  and 
the  Hessian  officers  to  their  parole,  and  to  propose 
to  General  Howe  that  they  be  exchanged  for  a  like 


SIR.   ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL.  j! 

number  of  our  men  of  equal  rank.  There  was 
more  vexatious  delay,  but  Howe  at  last  agreed  to 
enlarge  the  officers  in  his  hands  on  their  parole. 

In  November  Campbell  was  allowed  to  go  and 
come  anywhere  within  the  bounds  of  Concord, 
upon  giving  his  parole  of  honor  that  he  would  not 
pass  beyond  those  limits  nor  give  any  information 
to  the  enemy.1  Another  weary  winter  passed 
under  these  conditions,  but  in  the  spring  came  at 
last  the  much-desired  relief,  and  in  May,  1778, 
Campbell  was  exchanged  for  Colonel  Ethan  Allen, 
at  New  York. 

Thus  ended  a  captivity  of  two  years,  during 
which  time  this  capable  and  zealous  officer  had 
been  afforded  no  opportunity  to  demonstrate 


'The  form  of  parole  prescribed  by  the  Council  was  as  follows 
(Mass.  Archives,  Vol.  173,  f.  572): 

I  Archibald  Campbell  Lt  Colo,  of  the  71!!  Regt  being  made  a 
prisoner  of  war  by  the  Forces  of  the  United  State  of  America,  do 
promise  and  Engage  on  my  Word  &  honour  &  on  the  Faith  of  a 
Gentleman,  that  I  will  remain  within  the  Limits  &  Boundaries  of  the 
Town  of  Concord  in  the  County  of  Middlesex  &  will  not  Depart  out 
of  the  same,  during  the  present  War  between  G.  Brittf  and  the 
United  States,  or  untill  the  Continental  Congress  or  the  Assembly 
or  the  Council  of  the  State  of  Massachusetts  Bay  shall  order  other- 
wise: And  that  I  will  not,  directly  or  indirectly  give  any  Intelligence 
whatsoever  to  the  Enemies  of  the  United  States,  or  do  or  say  any- 
thing in  opposition  to  the  measures  &  proceedings  of  any  Congress 
or  Assembly  or  any  Officer  of  the  United  States,  or  of  either  of 
them,  during  the  present  Troubles,  or  untill  I  am  duly  Exchanged  or 
Discharged.  And  I  do  likewise  engage  that  Peter  Ferguson  my 
servant  who  is  allowed  to  attend  me,  shall  be  under  the  same 
restrictions  and  Limitations  with  myself.  Witness  my  hand  this 
I4th  Nov?  A.D.  1777. 


ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 

*j- 

his  ability  as  a  military  leader.  But  now  he 
was  to  have  his  revenge  —  the  revenge  of  a 
soldier.  For  he  was  soon  placed  in  command 
of  a  force  of  3,500  men,  including  the  yist  Regi- 
ment, who  sailed  to  the  southward  from  New 
York  in  November  of  the  same  year,  under 
orders  from  Sir  Henry  Clinton,  and  escorted  by 
a  squadron  of  ships-of-war  commanded  by  Com- 
modore Hyde  Parker.  The  Highlanders  were 
mustered  one  thousand  strong,  and  their  fine 
soldierly  appearance  was  favorably  remarked 
upon  in  the  publications  of  the  time. 

The  object  of  the  campaign  was  the  sub- 
jugation of  the  southern  colonies  and  the  pro- 
tection of  the  Georgia  loyalists.  Savannah,  the 
first  point  of  attack,  was  guarded  by  a  small 
force  of  Americans  under  General  Robert  Howe. 
Major-General  A.  Prevost,  then  at  St.  Augustine, 
was  ordered  by  General  Clinton  to  move  north- 
ward and  assume  the  general  direction  of  affairs 
at  Savannah.  This  order  was  dated  October  20, 
and  received  November  27,  the  very  day  on 
which  the  expedition  sailed  from  Sandy  Hook. 
Campbell  arrived  with  the  fleet  off  Tybee  Island 
on  December  23.  Learning  upon  his  arrival 
that  the  Americans  were  already  informed  of  his 
approach,  that  their  batteries  were  out  of  repair, 
that  the  Americans  in  the  town  were  few  in 
number,  but  expecting  re-inforcements  every  day, 


SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 


53 


Campbell  pushed  rapidly  forward  without  waiting 
for  re-inforcements  to  come  up,  or  for  the  slow 
approach  of  his  superior  officer.  Captain  Hyde 
Parker,  acting  commodore  in  command  of  the 
fleet,  actively  co-operated.  Our  people  were  not 
accustomed  to  such  energy  on  the  part  of  their 
foes.  In  the  dashing  impetuosity  of  the  High- 
land leader  there  was  no  trace  visible  of  the  slow, 
irresolute,  halting  tactics  of  Gage,  the  Howes,  of 
Clinton  and  Burgoyne.  The  immediate  results  of 
the  new  policy  were  startling.  By  one  prompt 
movement  vigorously  pressed  Savannah  was  taken ; 
and  our  forces,  largely  inferior  in  numbers,  be  it 
said,  and  unskillfully  handled,  everywhere  melted 
away  before  the  determined  purpose  of  a  genuine 
leader  of  men.  Bancroft  says :  "  No  victory  was 
ever  more  complete."  In  ten  days  Georgia  was 
brought  under  the  sway  of  the  British,  and  the 
campaign  virtually  ended  —  all  before  the  arrival 
of  General  Prevost  at  the  scene  of  operations 
some  time  after  the  middle  of  January.1 

There  is  some  reason  to  believe  that  the  brilliant 
and  complete  success  achieved  by  his  subordinate 
in  rank  was  not  altogether  pleasing  to  General 
Prevost,  and  that  their  subsequent  co-operation, 
though  outwardly  beseeming  their  respective  posi- 
tions, was  not  agreeable  to  either.  Certain  it  is 


1  See  Campbell's  report  to  Lord  George  Germain,  Almon's  Re- 
membrancer, Vol.  7,  p.  235 ;  Captain  Parker's  report,  id.  p.  244. 


54  SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL, 

that  Prevost  adopted  a  plan  of  campaign  against 
the  judgment  of  Campbell,  and  with  the  result 
that  most  of  the  ground  won  by  the  skill  and 
prowess  of  the  Highland  chieftain  was  soon  lost 
to  the  British  and  never  again  recovered. 

Campbell  soon  obtained  leave  of  absence  and 
returned  home  to  Scotland,1  where,  in  June, 
1779,  he  married  Amelia,  daughter  of  Allan 
Ramsay  of  Kinkell,  the  painter,  and  son  of  the 
poet  of  the  same  name.  It  is  said  that  King 
George  was  especially  pleased  with  Campbell 
because  of  his  success  in  the  Georgia  cam- 

m  & 

paign,  and  on  December  7,  1779,  appointed  him 
Lieutenant-Governor  of  Jamaica,  with  the  rank 
of  Brigadier-General  and  Aide-de-Camp  to  the 
King.  Here  on  October  29,  in  the  same  year, 
he  made  a  report  to  the  Earl  of  Shelburne 
concerning  two  successful  engagements  with  the 
Spaniards,  generously  giving  due  credit  to  the 
officers  in  command  of  the  British  forces  on 
those  occasions.2  In  the  year  1782  he  became 
Governor  of  the  island,  and  in  the  following  year 
was  commissioned  as  Major-General  in  the  line. 
In  August,  1784,  he  returned  home,  bearing 


1  In  Winsor's  History  of 'America  (Vol.  vi,  p.  519  n.)  it  is  said: 
"This  attack  on  Savannah  is  illustrated  in  the  Faden  Map  (1780) 
called  '  Sketch  of  the  Northern  Frontiers  of  Georgia  from  the  mouth 
of  the  River  Savannah  to  the  town  of  Augusta,  by  Lieut.  Col 
Arch?  Campbell.'" 

"Southey's  Hist.  W.  Indies,  II,  534. 


SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 


55 


with  him  an  elegant  service  of  plate,  presented 
by  the  assembly  of  that  colony  in  recognition  of 
his  distinguished  services. 

On  March  9,  1785,  Campbell  was  appointed 
Governor  of  Fort  St.  George,  at  Madras,  on  the 
southeastern  coast  of  India;  and  on  September  3 
in  the  same  year  he  was  created  a  Knight  of  the 
Bath.  The  patent  from  the  Herald's  Office  bears 
date  of  December  22,  1785,  and  styles  the  re- 
cipient of  the  honor  "  Sir  Archibald  Campbell, 
Major  General  of  his  Majesty's  Forces  and  Gov- 
ernour  of  Fort  St.  George  in  the  East  Indies." 
This  appointment  to  the  important  and  difficult 
post  of  Governor  at  Madras  was  conferred  dur- 
ing the  administration  of  the  younger  Pitt,  and 
when  at  the  head  of  the  Board  of  Control  was 
Henry  Dundas,  a  good  friend  of  Campbell.  In 
1786  Earl  Cornwallis  became  Governor-General 
of  India,  and  gave  frequent  testimony  in  his 
correspondence  to  the  ability,  efficiency,  and 
zeal  of  Sir  Archibald  Campbell,  whom  he  had 
known  favorably  in  America,  and  of  whom  he 
had  written,  two  years  before,  that  he  ought  to 
have  "a  commission  of  General  to  command  in 
chief  in  India." 

Campbell's  first  important  work  in  India  was 
the  new  modeling  of  the  forces  of  the  East  India 
Company  at  Madras,  according  to  a  plan  sub- 
mitted by  him  before  leaving  England.  In 


56  SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 

September,  1786,  he  was  appointed  by  the  King 
and  the  East  India  Company  Commander-in- 
Chief  of  the  forces  on  the  coast  of  Coromandel, 
to  succeed  Lieutenant-General  Sir  John  Dolling. 
Campbell  was  also  mainly  instrumental  in  the 
negotiation  of  the  treaty  of  February  24,  1787, 
concerning  the  debts  of  the  Nabob  of  Arcot,  a 
settlement  advantageous  to  all  concerned,  for 
which  he  took  much  credit  to  himself,  saying: 
"  The  power  of  the  purse  and  sword  is  now 
completely  secured  to  the  company,  without  les- 
sening the  consequence  of  the  Nabob." 

About  this  time  Cornwallis  wrote :  "  The  most 
perfect  harmony  subsists  here ;  no  Governour  ever 
was  more  popular  than  Sir  A.  Campbell ;"  and  again, 
"  I  must  do  Sir  A.  Campbell  the  justice  to  say  that 
he  seconds  me  nobly.  By  his  good  management 
and  economy  we  shall  now  be  relieved  from  the 
heavy  burden  of  paying  the  King's  troops  on  the 
coast,  and  I  have  no  doubt  that  his  conduct  will 
be  as  universally  approved  of  in  England  as  it  is  on 
this  side  of  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope." 

Notwithstanding  this  strong  testimony  to  the 
efficiency  and  popularity  of  the  Governor,  clouds 
of  criticism  and  disparagement  were  already 
gathering  at  home.  The  treaty  was  indeed  for- 
mally approved  as  a  whole  by  the  Court  of 
Directors  of  the  East  India  Company  sitting  in 
London,  but  a  hostile  feeling  on  the  part  of  some 


SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL.  57 

of  the  directors  was  equally  manifest,  and  every 
opportunity  was  seized  upon  to  attack  him.  The 
favorable  opinion  expressed  by  him  concerning 
the  Nabob  was  quoted  against  him,  especially 
when,  a  little  later,  "  that  venerable  prince "  was 
openly  accused  of  double  dealing.  Cornwallis  at 
Calcutta  deprecated  these  attacks  upon  Camp- 
bell, and  Mr.  Dundas  at  the  seat  of  government 
did  not  fail  to  express  his  satisfaction  with  the 
"  very  high  opinion  "  expressed  by  the  Governor- 
General  concerning  Campbell's  administration.  "  I 
agree  with  you  and  him,"  he  says,  "that  he  is 
very  illiberally  treated  by  the  Court  of  Directors, 
but  he  is  not  singular  in  that  respect.  We  are 
all  (except  your  Lordship,  as  yet)  sharers  in  it." 
Again  Cornwallis  wrote :  "  Nothing  could  give 
me  personally  greater  concern,  and  nothing,  in 
my  opinion,  could  be  more  fatal  to  the  British 
interest  in  India  than  his  removal.  He  has  shown 
great  ability,  and  the  most  perfect  uprightness  and 
integrity,  and  possesses  the  esteem  and  confidence 
of  the  civil  as  well  as  military  part  of  the  settle- 
ment." But  these  expostulations  failed  to  impress 
the  management  of  the  East  India  Company.  An 
administration  of  affairs  that  aimed  to  do  justice, 
to  enforce  economy,  and  thereby  save  money  for 
the  crown  did  not  especially  interest  the  directors. 
They  wanted  more  lacs  of  rupees  for  the  com- 
pany, and,  as  for  any  sympathy  with  the  natives, 


58  SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 

it  was,  in  their  opinion,  entirely  out  of  place  in 
the  transaction  of  business  in  India. 

A  high-minded  man  like  Campbell,  earnestly 
desirous  of  administering  his  office  honorably, 
faithfully,  and  with  justice  to  all  concerned,  may 
withstand  opposition  of  this  sort  for  a  season  with 
comparative  serenity,  secure  in  the  approval  of  his 
own  conscience,  but  the  time  surely  comes  when 
he  will  not  or  cannot  suffer  it  longer.  Some  time 
in  the  year  1787,  with  a  full  understanding  of 
the  influences  which  were  working  against  him, 
and  knowing  that  the  opposition  must  in  the 
end  be  successful,  he  gave  notice  that  he  should 
retire  from  his  office  and  return  to  England 
early  in  1789. 

On  October  12,  1787,  he  received  a  commission 
as  Colonel  of  the  74th  Highland  Regiment  of  Foot, 
which  was  raised  by  himself,  and  was  one  of  four 
that  were  especially  designed  for  service  in  the 
East.1  But  notwithstanding  the  honors  which 
were  heaped  upon  him,  it  is  only  too  evident 
that  this  faithful  and  high-spirited  public  servant 
realized  that  in  India  it  was  impossible  for  him  to 
serve  God  and  the  King,  and  at  the  same  time 
commend  his  administration  to  the  managers  of 
a  trading  corporation,  whose  anomalous  relations 


1  Brown's  History  of  the    Highlands,  &c.     Edinburgh  and  Lon- 
don, 1859. 


SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL.  59 

to  the  government  caused  frequent  embarrassment 
to  ministers  of  the  best  intentions.  In  February, 
1789,  Sir  Archibald  resigned  his  office  and  com- 
mission in  the  East,  and  sailed  for  home  with 
health  sadly  impaired,  and,  although  he  had  given 
the  directors  ample  notice,  before  they  were  able 
to  agree  upon  a  successor  in  his  office.1 

In  the  following  year  he  was  unanimously 
re-elected  to  Parliament  and  took  his  seat  for  the 
district  formerly  represented  by  him,  Sir  James,  his 
brother,  having  resigned  in  his  favor.  But  the 
change  from  the  climate  of  India  to  that  of  the 
British  Isles  was  too  much  for  a  constitution 
already  weakened  by  a  four  years'  sojourn  in 
the  East.  He  caught  cold  on  a  hurried  journey 
from  Scotland,  on  being  sent  for  to  consult  with 
the  government  concerning  an  armament  which 
was  being  made  ready  by  reason  of  a  dispute 
with  Spain  concerning  trade  to  the  northwest 
coast  of  America.  He  felt  obliged  to  decline  the 
command  which  was  offered  him  because  of  the 
state  of  his  health,  and  although  a  visit  to  Bath 
was  somewhat  beneficial,  death  came  upon  him 
at  his  home  in  Upper  Grosvenor  Street,  London, 
on  March  31,  1791,  in  the  fifty-second  year  of 
his  age. 


1  For  Campbell's  life  in  India,  see  Correspondence  of  Charles, 
first  Marquis  Cornwallis;  London,  1859;  also  Mill's  History  of  British 
India;  London,  1817. 


60  SIX    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 

The  whole  career  of  Sir  Archibald  Campbell, 
his  letters,  the  letters  of  Washington,  and  the 
uniformly  favorable  comments  of  contemporaries, 
all  go  to  show  that  he  was  a  gentleman  in  a 
true  and  universal  sense — courteous,  high-minded, 
considerate  of  others,  a  faithful  and  efficient  ad- 
ministrator of  affairs,  a  brave  and  accomplished 
officer.  In  a  letter  of  one  of  General  Howe's 
field  officers  he  is  spoken  of  as  "  our  worthy 
friend,"  whose  capture  "gives  unexpressible  con- 
cern to  his  friends,  who  you  know  are  numerous." 
Dr.  David  Ramsay,  the  American  historian,  de- 
scribes him  as  "  a  humane  man  and  a  meritorious 
officer,"  who,  although  "  he  had  personally  suffered 
from  the  Americans,  treated  all  who  fell  into  his 
hands  with  humanity,  his  course  in  this  respect 
being  in  marked  contrast  with  the  conduct  of  his 
successors  in  command." 

Having  no  issue,  Sir  Archibald  bequeathed 
the  greater  part  of  his  fortune  to  his  two  surviv- 
ing brothers,  Sir  James  Campbell  and  Commis- 
sary Duncan  Campbell,  in  equal  shares,  but 
subject  to  the  payment  of  some  legacies,  and  a 
jointure  to  the  widow  of  one  thousand  pounds 
sterling  per  year.  To  his  nephew,  Captain  James 
Campbell,  eldest  son  of  Sir  James,  he  gave  all 
his  military  books,  instruments,  and  drawings, 
also  his  arms,  "  knowing  that  he  will  never  tar- 
nish them."  The  brothers  caused  a  monument  to 


SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL.  6 1 

be  erected  over  the  remains,  in  the  Poets'  Corner 
of  Westminster  Abbey,  upon  which  is  inscribed 
the  following : 

Sacred  to  the  memory  of  Major  General  Sir  Archi- 
bald Campbell,  Knight  of  the  Bath,  M.  P.,  Colonel  of  the 
74th  Highland  Regiment  of  Foot,  Hereditary  Usher  of 
the  White  Rod  for  Scotland,  late  Governor  of  Jamaica, 
Governor  of  Fort  St.  George,  &  Commander-in-Chief 
of  the  Forces  on  the  Coast  of  Coromandel  in  the  East 
Indies.  He  died  equally  regretted  &  admired  for  his 
eminent  civil  &  military  services  to  his  country,  pos- 
sessed of  distinguished  endowments  of  mind,  dignified 
manners,  inflexible  integrity,  unfeigned  benevolence,  with 
every  social  &  amiable  virtue.  He  departed  this  life 
March  31"*,  1791,  aged  52.  Heu  pietas,  heu  prisca  fides 
et  bellica  virtus,  Quando  Habitiira  Parent. 

Following  is  a  copy  of  the  inscription  on  the 
stone  in  the  floor  over  the  grave: 

Sir  Archibald  Campbell 

of  Inverneil. 

Knight  of  the  most  honorable  order  of  the  Bath,  Major 
General  of  His  Majesty's  Forces,  Colonel  of  His  Majesty's 
74th  Highland  Regiment  of  Foot,  Hereditary  Usher  of 
the  White  Rod  for  Scotland,  late  Governor  of  Jamaica, 
afterwards  Governor  of  Fort  St.  George  and  Commander- 
in-Chief  on  the  Coast  of  Coromandel  in  the  East  Indies. 
He  died  3ist  March,  1791,  in  the  52**  year  of  his  age. 

Surely,  at  this  distance  in  time  the  loyal  sons 
of  America  need  not  hesitate  to  award  to  the 
memory  of  this  remarkable  man  full  measure  of 
respectful  recognition,  even  though  he  was  op- 
posed in  arms  to  our  fathers  in  their  great 


62  SIR    ARCHIBALD    CAMPBELL. 

struggle  for  full  political  rights.  By  reason  of 
the  hard  fortune  of  war  it  was  impossible,  in  the 
nature  of  the  case,  that  he  should  have  enjoyed 
his  sojourn  in  Concord,  but  we  of  a  later  genera- 
tion must  needs  regret  that  his  enforced  residence 
in  our  town  was  not  made  pleasanter,  or  at  least 
less  irksome  to  him.  Possibly  we  may  think  it 
especially  incumbent  upon  us,  so  far  as  it  rests 
in  our  power,  to  see  to  it  that  he  be  remembered 
with  that  just  appreciation  of  his  merits  which 
in  his  lifetime,  because  of  untoward  circumstances 
and  the  harshness  born  of  warfare,  was  not  be- 
stowed upon  him  by  our  fathers. 


